Reflexology Presurgery

This weekend, I carried out a reflexology case study session for my husband, Markus, this one being the last before his Mohs (skin cancer) surgery on Tuesday. A miracle happened two days ago; he got the call on Friday to go in for Tuesday as there was a cancellation. His original surgery was scheduled for the end of October and we have been putting pressure on the medical system to see if there was a way to get him in sooner, but we were loosing hope. We are quite relieved and very grateful as the wait has been a long one (a year now). We leave to Vancouver on Monday and return home on Wednesday.

Markus is tired from his job (letter carrier) during the pandemic and since we didn’t do a session last weekend, it was overdue. He has noticed however an increase in energy on the job due to his new (gluten free) diet. I noticed something interesting during today’s session; the large bunion on his left foot is significantly smaller! His feet have been surprising us lately! There have been many changes over the past weeks and months from new shoes to diet changes so I am guessing the combination of footwear correction and inflammation reduction have helped the bunion to shrink. The lifestyle and diet changes implemented in May continue to make significant changes in Markus’s well-being and have given us hope. I have started to adopt some of these changes into my own life as well. We are now both gluten-free.

After a full foot reflexology routine, I accentuated the stress-relief reflexes (solar plexus and pituitary) on the foot with the tuning fork. Then, we spent time working on facial reflexology. I have introduced myself to Dien Chan, a unique facial reflexology system founded in Vietnam by acupuncturist and professor Bùi Quôc Châu and further adopted and developed in Spain and Italy. These techniques are used to release tension in the face, for beauty and also health benefits. Oh and it also feels good! I have acquired a few additional tools and have been exploring some new techniques. Since I have been experimenting on my own face, I have noticed a change in my skin and a few of the deeper character lines have receded a bit. Today Markus explored using some of the tools on his own face. After his surgery and once he is healed, he will also be engaging in Dien Chan regularly. Dien Chan is also said to be helpful for healing surgical scars. It will be interesting to see how his face responds since having dealt with skin cancer. In the future, I hope to get certified and offer this modality along side of the foot reflexology. But in the meantime, we will experiment as we are the perfect guinea pigs. Stay tuned for those updates.

Markus appeared very sleepy during the session and expressed some excitement and nervousness around the surgery, but an hour later felt energized. He commented as usual about how amazing his feet felt after the session. Reflexology is effective for reducing the stress of surgery. I will approach carefully afterwards. You can find peer reviewed articles on Google Scholar about this.

Although his (Basal Carcinoma) cancer isn’t fatal (at this stage or that we know of), once we saw it starting to spread back in April – we knew we were in trouble as we realized this wasn’t an isolated incident. Thankfully with the abrupt diet and lifestyle changes, things have helped to calm some inflammation. None the less it has been incredibly scary as we felt so out of control – this in combination with the pandemic have made it a very trying time. I do feel optimistic that we are now in the home stretch.

Markus picked the Wolf (reminds me of the wolf who visited our village in the mountains of Italy last year) card and I added in the Healing Archetype card from the Wild Unknown card series (Kim Krans). Finally we used the Healing card from the Water Crystal (Masaru Emoto) deck for intentionally inspiring his cup of water. This is a special session, so I decided to combine an additional card (Healing) for guidance and good luck.

Markus selected the Italian Dolomite mountain footage for his ambience.

I will close with this new music video from Depeche Mode : Fragile Tension

Disclaimer: Reflexology does not diagnose, prescribe or treat for specific conditions. Always seek proper medical attention should you suspect you have a medical problem. Reflexology is not a replacement for medical treatment.

Reflexology & Synchronicity

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This weekend we focused on the fine details of my subject, Markus, who is very observant with both his eyes and his ears. And so I found it interesting that while I was picking out an animal focus card to use for the reflexology session, at almost the same time he asked for the hawk card, just as I was holding it. And so hawk energy it is!

This past week, his depot participated in a health worker appreciation and a 45 truck convoy made it’s way to the Victoria General Hospital to show their appreciation. You can find some videos of that on Canada Post’s Facebook page. It was very touching to see the cross appreciation of the frontline workers during this difficult time.

Markus’s job continues to be heavily loaded. As a postie, they are seeing record high parcel volumes similar to Christmas time. Except this has been never ending and the weight of the job has definitely been taking some toll on his stress and knees. He has since upgraded to a new style of shoe to see if that helps take some of the impact. Also, people have been more aggressive than usual about receiving their parcels as there are delays due to Covid-19. And so my husband has had to deal with his fair share of difficult incidences on his route.

This coupled with growing and spreading skin cancer (another suspicious spot has emerged on the other side of his face) has been stressful, for us both. We are currently waiting for a variety of face gaiters and strong UV protective clothing that is also stuck in transit. We need to make contact with the dermatologist as soon as they open to alert them to this and see if there is any way to expedite his surgery. He has been waiting over a year and we have another half a year to go. We are discussing phasing out his job as a postie and moving him indoors in the near future.

On a personal level, I have been having more trouble sleeping lately due to the worry and will start to administer stronger more consistent self-reflexology routines for stress and sleep.

For this session, I performed a full foot reflexology routine, some facial massage, used the tuning fork to emphasize the stress-reducing reflex points and applied Reiki to the cranial, face, knees and legs. He felt amazing after the session as well the following day. It gives me some relief to know that I can do something to reduce his stress. When we reduce our stress, we can put our body into parasympathetic mode and that is when we heal ourselves.

Cards used: Masaru Emoto – Cranial from Water Crystal & Hawk from Wild Unknown by Kim Krans

Disclaimer: Reflexology does not diagnose, prescribe or treat for specific conditions. Always seek proper medical attention should you suspect you have a medical problem. Reflexology is not a replacement for medical treatment.

Reflexology & Self Care

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In the last session with my husband, Markus, I combined reflexology with sound therapy (music and tuning fork), in addition to some facial reflexology (feels so good!). As you might know, I am now incorporating cards into the sessions. For this session, I selected the Frog card for Markus as I felt it best described the guidance he needs. I have decided to give him the treatments on the weekend so that he has the following day to completely decompress and relax. This also allows the healing cleanse some time to do its magic.

Although I’ll have completed over 50 treatments by the end of my practicum, Markus will be my longest ongoing study, for life. Markus is a ‘postie’ who walks 30 km days on the job. During this Covid19 pandemic, mail and parcel volumes have actually skyrocketed. This is good on one hand but bad on the other as it’s a huge physical burden. Markus is also battling skin cancer and we are patiently waiting for strong sun protective clothing coming all the way from Australia. He is still 6 months away from surgery. In the meantime he needs to cover up all his exposed skin from the harmful UV rays.

If you work outdoors, COVER UP!!!!

Cards: Water Crystal by Masaru Emoto and Wild Unknown by Kim Krans

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Disclaimer: Reflexology does not diagnose, prescribe or treat for specific conditions. Always seek proper medical attention should you suspect you have a medical problem. Reflexology is not a replacement for medical treatment.

China Beach

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Taking advantage of the longer days, my husband and I took a drive out to China beach this past weekend. It was glorious and so well needed. The soft dark volcanic sand hugged the big black basalt stones rising out of the sea floor contrasting perfectly against the bright pacific ocean colours and the blue sky backdrop. It was a west coast serving of intoxicating sights and sounds. Along the way, we admired some beach stones and other ocean treasures such as chiton shells, fish heads, sea weed and even a bit of sea glass. I always feel better when I am surrounded by nature. We are fortunate to be at an arms reach from these places but of course I dream of being even closer; to immerse ones self in nature is a perfect life and it’s one I strive to achieve.

There is no doubt in my mind that even the inanimate natural objects hold more secrets than we can ever know. We take for granted the abundance of black stones all around us, for they are non living, non feeling objects. But they serve a structural purpose for our earth. The interconnectedness of not only living beings but the matter that upholds life provides a ground to stand on. Better yet, it provides a way to ground our own bodies, first making contact with our feet, better experienced without shoes. Spring is close and as the warmer temperatures draw near, it is the perfect opportunity to rub bare feet against these ocean floor basalt stones; for they are the natural masters of massage. Next time you find yourself around soft stones, go ahead and give your feet (and hands and face) a rub. You might be surprised as to how good it feels. At the very least, take a moment to observe their purpose and presence.